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By now the beltway followers must be wondering about impeachment. The message boards and chat rooms will debate the feasibility. The blogs will pontificate on the probabilities and legalities. All of this, of course, is dependent on the Democrats winning the necessary seats this November, or so many of them will say. Will they try to impeach not only Bush, but Cheney too? None of that is important. There should be no debate on whether it is feasible, possible, legal or politically practical. There is only one question that needs to be asked. What do the American people want? What do they want their elected representatives to do on the subject of impeachment? That is the question; the only question Congress should ask.There have been more than enough articles written on alleged illegal activities of the current administration. Congressman John Conyers has already completed a study documenting the evidence. The court rulings continue to find against the administration. It is no longer a debate about evidence. The debate is now mainly over whether the Congress, or enough of it's members, have the guts to follow through. Why are there not polls on this subject making headlines several days each week? Is it too much of a political hot potato for Congress to handle? Are they all waiting until the results of the upcoming election are behind them to see if they can pull it off? Every elected representative should care not about any of these questions, but rather, what their own constituents want.
For a country that is supposed to be a government "of the people, for the people, and by the people", why are the people not being asked and heard? Because it has ceased being a country of, for and by the people, and has become a country of, by and for special interests, corporate interests and lobbied interests. By virtue of having been elected our representatives feel they can take it upon themselves to govern as they see fit. Many things need to change to turn the situation around, not least of which are campaign finance reform and election reforms, but what is needed now is accountability for the current situation and that means holding all elected official's feet to the fire. This will happen only if the public outcry is heard, which means the public must be willing to voice their opinions. Based on recent polls, the approval rating of Congress is eluding to a great deal of dissatisfaction with the status quo. The question is not whether enough of the members of Congress have the moxie to undertake impeachment hearings, but whether the people will begin to insist they now be heard. How often do we hear we should call or write our members of Congress? Often enough, but it seems they must not be listening, thus the low approval rating in the polls. Either that or the electorate is too silent. Unless the American people are willing and able to make their voices heard, no changes will take place. This assumes a change does indeed need to be made. If you honestly believe that you and your family are better off now than you were six years ago, then perhaps you see no need for a change. If you feel, as recent polls show, that this country is going down the wrong path, then sitting idly by is no longer an option.
As of now, partisanship rules. On this subject, however, and on every other subject as well, partisanship should be set aside. Even the national polls should be set aside. Our elected officials work for their constituents. Senators should rely on what the members of their state want them to do. Representatives should follow how those in their districts want them to vote. There appears to be a move afoot to "throw the scoundrels out of office". This should have incumbents worried and the electorate emboldened. It is time to seize the day, and should those same elected officials fail to head the call of their constituency, then the threat of recall should be crossing their lips as well as voting the rascals out.
Elected officials work for us, we don't work for them. We are not accountable to them, they are accountable to us. We are all expected to obey the laws of the land, as well we should, but they are not above the law either. The founding fathers set the rules, the laws of the land, into the Constitution foreseeing events such as we now find before us. It is that same Constitution the elected officials swore an oath to uphold. It is now time to hold them to that oath, regardless of their party affiliation, regardless of their own beliefs, and regardless of whether it is feasible or not. It is time for American citizens to take their country back. It is time for the administration, members of Congress and the lobbyists that control them to stop setting the agenda for the American people, and time for the people to begin insisting their agenda be at the forefront of political debate. It is time for the administration's empirical adventurism to cease, and focus on our own citizenry. This will only happen if people make it so. The American people can no longer afford to be a silent majority. It is OUR government, not theirs.
Is impeachment a wise idea? Will it harm our Republic? These are questions that don't have an easy yes or no answer, but they are the wrong questions. The correct question is do the people want impeachment hearings to proceed or not. If so, then let the will of the people take place. If not, then move on to something else.
